Tanjoubi
by kurokinshiro
Summary: Mark these days on your calendar: birthdays and seasons, holidays and festivals---red-letter dates in the Naruto world.
1. Uchiha Itachi tsuyu

Story Title: Tanjoubi

Disclaimer(s): Naruto is Kishimoto Masashi-sensei's. Otherwise, this wouldn't be called **fan**fiction, wouldn't it?

Author's Note: _Tanjoubi_ (Birthday) is composed of one-shots (drabble-fics and otherwise) centering around the Naruto characters' birthdays (from the data book). The title is actually sort of misleading, because I will be including other holidays/festivals as I see fit.

Each installment will have a 'prompt', usually a _kigo_ or two. _Kigo_ are season-specific words; they are used very often in _haiku_ in order to place the setting/mood/season. The _kigo_ I will use will be based on the seasons of the traditional lunar calendar, unless stated otherwise. International _haiku_ poets often employ seasonal words native to their own region/country, so expect a few non-Japanese words. More information on _kigo_ may be found on Wikipedia and other independent sites, should you be interested in checking this out.

Warning(s): M Rating, for future language and situations. There is a strong possibility of shipping in the future. Manga spoilers may abound (I usually keep abreast of updates, so please consider yourselves warned.)

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Uchiha Itachi, June 9. _Tsuyu_.

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Itachi was born at the onset of the longest and most intense _tsuyu_ in Leaf's history; this caused some concern for the Uchiha elders. They worried that this might be a bad omen for the heir of Konoha's powerful fire jutsu clan. Fugaku and Mikoto's eldest, having been born earlier than anticipated, began his life with water, and not the expected heat of midsummer.

While the rest of Konohagakure would afterwards remember that summer as the greenest in decades, and a much-welcome respite from the travails of war, the elite of the Uchiha would recall their slight misgivings over the boy.

Itachi seemed to prove them wrong in later years. He was the best and the brightest in the Leaf, an Uchiha prodigy who had far exceeded their expectations.

It is when they stare into the terrifying crimson eyes of the clan's most powerful offspring, drenched in scarlet rain, would they realize they had been right all along.

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_Tsuyu_ is a summer _kigo_ meaning "rainy season."


	2. Sarutobi Hiruzen hinaga,tanpopo

Story Title: Tanjoubi

Disclaimer(s): Naruto is Kishimoto Masashi-sensei's. Otherwise, this wouldn't be called **fan**fiction, wouldn't it?

Author's Note (or rant, more like): *Spoilers!!!* What the heck were those latest manga chapters?! Sure I'm glad that Kakashi's alive and well, but the resolution concerning Pein felt strangely, well, flat. The homecoming/hero's welcome also seemed a little, I don't know, artificial to me, never mind that lots of people got resurrected because of Naruto and would be grateful… I was amused, though, when Shikaku went, "I nominate Hatake Kakashi." I was, like, whoa. As in, certain-fanfics-are-becoming-canon whoa. Unfortunately, that geezer had to butt in. Argh. The only other bright spot was the arrival of the Cloud team in Konoha—what a destructive rock, indeed. :)

Author's Note 2: In celebration of finally earning my degree, I give you this installment and hope you like it.

Warning(s): M Rating, for language and situations in future installments (just to be safe). There is a very strong possibility of shipping in the future. Manga spoilers may abound.

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Sarutobi Hiruzen, February 8. _Hinaga. Tanpopo._

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Sarutobi did not put much stock in birthday celebrations, unlike the younger generations of shinobi under him, and as Hokage, his duty to the village trumped any special occasions.

Today, though, he had been deeply tempted to use his birthday as an excuse to escape the landfill of paperwork that was his office. In addition, there seemed to be some secret agreement among his subordinates to bring forward every problem/ grievance/catfight/Hatake-Gai duel in Leaf's existence for him to pass judgment on.

Just this afternoon, it had been all he could do to _not_ chuck his crystal ball when, after subtly needling each other, Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuuga Hiashi began round number three hundred and seventy-something of the "my clan is the strongest in Konoha" argument—an argument stretching back to the days of the village's founding. Were the first two Hokage still alive, the Nidaime would have been taking potshots at the Uchiha pride ("What do you expect, with an ancestor like theirs? That Madara was one prickly fellow…"), while the Shodaime would have been shaking his head in pained amusement. In private, Sarutobi spitefully thought that the original conflict probably began from some perceived slight, such as which clan had better hair.

As Shikaku's boy was fond of saying—troublesome.

He snapped out of his musings when a pair of ANBU leapt through his window. One of them, wearing an owl mask, was holding a young boy in a way that reminded the Sandaime of a recalcitrant puppy restrained by its owner. A very noisy puppy, who apparently just noticed him.

"Jiji!" Uzumaki Naruto squirmed in his captor's hold.

Sarutobi rubbed his temples in an effort to ward off this new headache. "What is it _this_ time?" he wearily asked the two ninja.

The one with the rabbit mask stepped forward. "Hokage-sama, Uzumaki has been making a nuisance of himself at the entrance and has attempted to sneak past the guards no less than twenty times, in order to see you. Nara Shikaku-san happened to pass by and suggested that the boy be at least be granted an audience." At his village leader's unimpressed visage, the shinobi stoically continued, "It was that, or turn him over to the village police for causing a disturbance."

The Sandaime inwardly winced. The rumors surrounding the Kyuubi's attack and its alleged connection to the Uchiha clan had never completely died (thanks to Danzo and his cronies), and in his secret thoughts, Sarutobi could not deny that the circumstances of that tragic event were more than a little suspicious. Placing Naruto at the mercy of Sharingan wielders (wrongfully suspected or not) was, to put it mildly, highly unacceptable. Thankfully, this pair of ANBU seemed more perceptive than most…

The old man sighed and sent the shinobi on their way. Steeling himself for a battle of wills, Sarutobi glanced at the child. He found himself hard-pressed to restrain a chuckle: Uzumaki Naruto might look like his father, but the utterly stubborn and rebellious expression on his face was pure Kushina.

"Well, Naruto-kun? What may I do for you?"

The boy's face relaxed slightly, and it was with some slowness that he reached into his pocket and retrieved a couple of crumpled pieces of paper, which he handed to the baffled Hokage. Sarutobi's eyebrows rose in surprise when he realized that they were coupons from the Ichiraku stand—for free ramen.

"Tomine-sensei said your birthday was today."

It was rare to catch Sarutobi Hiruzen totally off-guard. Naruto was offering coupons for _free_ _ramen_—Naruto!—for _Sarutobi's birthday_. Naruto, who had a miserable track record concerning his own birthdays, and had probably been hoarding the coupons like a dragon would guard its treasure.

He was aware, dimly, that he was totally failing that premier "a shinobi does not show emotion" rule right now.

Gruffly, he put a hand on the child's golden head. "Thank you, my boy."

Naruto's smile was like the sun.

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_Hinaga_ is a spring kigo meaning "long day."

_Tanpopo_ is a spring kigo meaning "dandelion."

Author's Postscript: When given a choice between a door and a window, a shinobi will always choose the latter. :)


	3. Hatake Kakashi Haruno Sakura Team 7 isan

Story Title: Tanjoubi

Disclaimer(s): Naruto is Kishimoto Masashi-sensei's, of course.

Author's Note: This installment is definitely AU, including character back stories. I might work it into a future fic. The prompts are not _kigo_; fans will probably be familiar with _isan_ in connection with the Yondaime and Naruto.

Warning(s): M Rating, for language and situations in future parts (just to be safe). There is a very strong possibility of shipping in the future. Manga spoilers may abound.

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Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura, Team 7. Un-birthday._ Isan_.

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Kakashi will freely admit that he had not been a very good sensei to Sakura. Naruto had been too strong a reminder of Namikaze Minato, as Sasuke had been for Obito. The two boys, ticking time bombs that they were, had taken up all of his attention and energy, leaving Sakura virtually unattended.

(He thinks, he must attempt to correct this, even in some small way.)

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To Sasuke, Hatake Kakashi passed on his original jutsu, the _Chidori_. Kakashi had created this jutsu during the Third Great Shinobi War after encountering the awe-inspiring lightning storms in Kaminari no Kuni. He greatly regretted teaching it.

To Naruto, he had nothing of his own to give. The Sharingan could not duplicate the Fourth's prized jutsu, the _Rasengan_; nor did Kakashi have the know-how to teach the technique which gave his sensei the moniker "Yellow Flash", the _Hiraishin no Jutsu_. And so for his mentor's son, he could only assist: he partnered with _kouhai_ Yamato to instruct the blonde on element manipulation, leading Naruto to develop the _Rasenshuriken_, and after Jiraiya had passed, performed in the capacity of executor of the Toad Sage's will—he guided Naruto in the mastery of the _Hiraishin_ from a secret scroll previously in Jiraiya's possession. Even the three-pronged kunai he gave to the blonde to use for the _Hiraishin_ had originally been Namikaze Minato's.

To Sakura, he gave something which symbolized a time he had wished to forget forever: a white-hilted blade.

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His favored student had left the village, his sensei's son had passed on to another's tutelage, and his last pupil (if you could call her that) had sought the instruction of Konoha's greatest kunoichi. He regrets that, blinded by the prodigy and the living memory, he had overlooked Sakura's latent potential.

Ruefully he thinks that he would have done her little good: he was rubbish with girls. (He remembers Rin, with slight pain.) He has to admit, though, that he could have done better by her. So the week following Sasuke's battle with Itachi (Sasuke has slipped from their grasp, once again, once again), he takes Sakura aside and solemnly places in her hands a sheathed blade, promising to teach her how to wield it.

It was something which Kakashi had especially commissioned for his lone female student. It seemed to him an echo of his father's memento, which had been broken during the battle of Kannabi Bridge in Grass Country.

"Use it to cut, and cut cleanly."

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Kakashi wished for a lot of things. He wished that the most important thing he would leave his students was the mastery of the most important lesson he himself had learned over the long, painful years, the very first lesson he had tried to teach Team Seven. But that wish had fallen apart.

Thus to Sakura he gave a blade—the incarnation of his hope and despair, the embodiment of all the people who had shaped him (his sensei, his father, Obito) into what he was today, the would-be instrument which would redeem his honor—praying that she might use it to cut away the sickness and rot which plagued their family (for that was—is, what Team Seven is), and take down the barriers that had sprung up from hurt and betrayal.

Kakashi hopes he can pass on this one good thing.

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_Isan_ means "legacy." un-birthday is a concept from Lewis Carroll.


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